1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to preparation of solutions for analysis, and more particularly, related to a device and method for recovery of a solution from an absorbent material.
2. Background of the Invention
Immunoassay is conventionally carried out by contacting in an assay vehicle a solution of an analyte, such as an antigen, antibody or hapten, with a specific antianalyte. The sensitivity of the assay is often at least in part determined by the concentration of the analyte in the assay vehicle, and, in general, it is advantageous to carry out the assay on as concentrated a solution of analyte as possible.
When a bacterial or viral infection is suspected in a patient, identification of the pathogen is often necessary in order to determine the most effective treatment. Frequently this entails taking a culture sample, by swabbing the patient's throat or nasal passage, immersing the swab in an appropriate liquid in a receptacle to give a solution of an antigen associated with the pathogen, and performing an immunoassay on the solution. Use of too much liquid for immersion of the swab reduces the antigen concentration in the solution. On the other hand, use of too little liquid results in absorption of a substantial portion of the solution into the swab so that insufficient solution remains in the receptacle to perform the assay.
A variety of related devices has been disclosed for collecting, maintaining and transporting culture specimens to be taken by swab. In general, these devices include a swab and a receptacle containing a liquid to keep the specimen viable during transport, and may also include structure to protect a technician from coming into contact with the specimen at any time during use of the device. Representative of such devices are those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,674,007 to Freis and U.S. Pat. No. 3,776,220 to Monaghan. In some such devices, as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,918,435 to Beall et al., the liquid is provided in a separate frangible container. U.S. Pat. No. 4,175,008 to White additionally provides a long swab stem for ease of specimen taking which includes a breakaway feature for use with a short compact receptacle to facilitate sample transport.